


Safe

by celizamur



Series: A Keen Sense of the Oblivious [4]
Category: MacGyver (TV 2016)
Genre: 4x04, F/M, Friends to Lovers, Hurt/Comfort, Slow Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-01
Updated: 2020-03-01
Packaged: 2021-02-28 02:54:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,224
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22976485
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/celizamur/pseuds/celizamur
Summary: Small missing moment in episode 4x04, with a few liberties taken.Riley and Mac need a minute to compose themselves, after swerving death for the thousandth time in two weeks.Desi may have noticed Riley left a couple of things out of her report.
Relationships: Riley Davis & Angus MacGyver (MacGyver TV 2016), Riley Davis/Angus MacGyver (MacGyver TV 2016)
Series: A Keen Sense of the Oblivious [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1372051
Comments: 13
Kudos: 230





	Safe

**Author's Note:**

> Episode 4x04 caught me right in the feels. I wrote this quite quickly, but I needed to get it out of my brain and on to the page. I hope you enjoy it, please leave me a comment or a kudos to let me know if you like this series x

* * *

The heartbeat beneath Riley’s ear reminded her to breathe, as her brain continued to spit out jumbled fragments of the past 60 seconds. The adrenaline spike that pushed her blood to speed through her veins and electrify her nerves, disappeared suddenly, leaving gaps where the cold began to seep in.

Bomb.

Fall.

Mac.

Warm.

When her brain finally caught up, Riley became aware of her surroundings. Mac’s arms had her enveloped in a tight hold against his chest, where Riley currently had her head buried in. Without even realizing she was holding her breath, she exhaled loudly, feeling whatever strength she had dissipate as her breath left her body. If Mac wasn’t holding her, Riley was sure she would’ve fallen to the floor.

Gently pulling her head back slightly, the world came into view once more. Mac’s eyes were closed as he rested his head against the stone wall behind them, with his strong jaw clenched tightly. Riley knew exactly what he was thinking. Currently, she knew Mac was replaying each moment in his mind, but with a twist. Each moment would be repeated yet Mac would imagine how exactly it could’ve _gone wrong_. He had described it to her once after a few beers, how his brain counted the amount of times he skipped death. _They_ skipped death.

Eyes flying open, Mac looked down at her, “you okay?” he asked her quickly. Riley nodded against his brown, leather jacket, “yeah”, she replied softly as Mac dropped his cheek against the top of her head.

“Well we’re not dead, so that’s a win,” Riley whispered, smiling against Mac’s shoulder as she felt him huff with laughter, tension seeping from his body.

Matty’s voice filtered through the coms, asking for everyone’s positions, her tone demanding but Riley could hear the hint of worry in her voice. Mac began to reply, informing her of the terrifying event that had just occurred.

Hearing Desi’s panicked voice about the survivor she was trying to save, caused a strike of fear to hit Riley’s gut, and all she wanted was to block everything out. Without thinking she moved her face so her ear pressed against the vibration of Mac’s heartbeat. Mac’s arms remained wrapped around her tiny frame, locking her in place. Even though the building around them was collapsing into chaos, for a moment there was silence, and all Riley could hear was the steady beat of Mac’s heart beneath her ear. Closing her eyes for a moment, she simply let herself feel an emotion she rarely ever felt; _safe._

Until… “you hear that?” Riley pulled back so she could look Mac in the eye, “why is the bomb hissing at us?”

Worried cobalt eyes switched between Riley’s gaze and the bomb next to them. Riley watched as Mac leaned forward, pressing his ear against the rusted lump of danger. She couldn’t help the voice yelling in her mind, warning her, to drag Mac out of this building and very far away from that device.

“The acetone capsule broke,” Mac sighed, “the bomb’s going to go off.”

Riley swore in that moment, her heart stopped. Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath, attempting to settle her nerves.

Not working.

Why was she was so tired?

“Riles?” a voice softly called, yet Riley could barely hear it. The hissing was so loud, slithering into her brain and blocking any hopeful thoughts. A soft pressure against her cheek, caused her eyelids to lift gently. Riley was met with an understanding gaze, which only made her want to melt into Mac’s arms once more.

Which should be confusing, yet Riley found clarity with the safety she felt with him. She wasn’t ready to question that feeling. 

“We’re going to get out of this. You and me, okay?” Mac informed her kindly, his thumb brushing her cheekbone as he spoke. His eyes flitted across her face as he spoke.

Riley nodded jerkily, exhaling and trying to refocus her brain, “I’m sorry I-” she tried to explain, but Mac was quick to interrupt her. Dropping his hand from her face, he moved so both hands gripped her shoulders tightly, “-a bomb just chased you down two flights of stairs. Don’t apologize - we can spare a minute to recharge.” His tone was like steel, there was no arguing with him.

Riley nodded again, starting to feel as if she had lost her voice. She realized her hands were still gripping the sides of his leather jacket, her fingers curled around the material, no intention of letting go. A few months ago, she may have been embarrassed, but in this moment, she couldn’t care less. Instead, she moved her arms so they wrapped around his middle, drawing herself closer to seek the moment of safety she craved.

Riley must’ve surprised him as his body froze for a millisecond, before Mac completely melted into her gesture, wrapping his arms securely around her frame.

The heartbeat beneath her ear warmed her soul, and she relished the feeling. Even though they were centimeters away from bomb, millimeters from danger, Riley knew Mac would always make her feel safe.

* * *

“So… Mac saved you from the big bomb thing?” Desi inquired Riley, as they walked through the halls of the Phoenix, dropping their _after mission reports_ to HR. Riley detected something in Desi’s voice, but she couldn’t put her finger on it.

“Yeah, he pulled me out of the way. If it wasn’t for him… guess I’d be squished right now,” Riley lightheartedly said, trying to ignore her heart beginning to race at the memory.

Desi hummed, flicking through the report before shutting it quickly, “and then ye…” she innocently supplied, waiting for Riley to fill in.

“Then the capsule broke-”

“-no before that,” Desi interrupted.

“…the bomb fell down the stairs, and Mac pulled me out of the way,”

“And then…”

“Then the capsule broke,”

“No before that,”

“The bomb threatened to squash me,” Riley exclaimed, throwing her hands up in slight exasperation, confused at the interrogation.

Desi rolled her eyes, crossing her arms and moving to stand in front of Riley, “there’s a small time gap.”

“There’s no gap,”

“Oh, there’s a gap alright,” Desi informed her, her eyebrows raising and a slight smirk across her lips. Riley thought that was the first time she had ever seen the woman smile. Opening the file, she began flipping to the page where Riley’s account had been filed. “So, 12:03 the building shakes and-”

“-fine. I needed a minute to _compose_ myself,” Riley revealed, her cheeks reddening from the memory.

Desi paused, her head titling as she analyzed Riley’s words. “So, you stood there, composed yourself while Mac reviewed the bomb,” Desi calculated, waiting for Riley’s reaction.

Riley opened her mount and closed it twice before replying, “yeah,” taking the file from Desi’s hands and continuing her path towards the HR office.

Riley’s heart was racing in her chest. She didn’t know why she lied, why it mattered, but… she was suddenly guilty by how she felt when she was with Mac.

“Riley,” Desi called, causing the woman to halt in her march, but she didn’t turn around, Riley felt as if she couldn’t look her friend in the eye. “Don’t block out your feelings, sometimes… we need to listen to them, even if we don’t understand them.” 


End file.
